Do not whine. The biggest mistake you can do when you don’t get promoted is to whine about it. You may not agree with what happened but whining about it especially to your boss wouldn’t change the decision and may only validate their decision not to promote you.

What to do?

1. A number of people I know resigned upon learning they didn’t get the promotion they were expecting. This is something I do not understand because transferring to another company doesn’t increase their chances of promotion unless they have moved to a smaller organization.
2. Be humble. There is nothing more you can do at this stage and being arrogant would only annoy your superiors and make them feel they have made the right decision of not giving you the nod.
3. Meet with your superiors and ask them what needs to be done to get that promotion. Listen carefully and improve on their coaching points.
4. Meet their expectations and go beyond. Meet every expectation they have told you and go beyond that.

Getting a promotion requires a high level of performance and the satisfaction your superiors. It is not enough that you work your butt off; but also, to meet your superiors’ expectations.